Today on Altcoins This Week we discuss the recent acquisition made by Litecoin of a stage on a German Bank, President Trump sings executive order to create crypto-related task force And More.

Crypto Low Prices Good News For Gamers

With cryptocurrency prices in decline this year, demand for high spec gaming cards has abated, meaning that gamers themselves no longer have to compete with crypto miners to get their hands on the best hardware on the market. Computerworld reported this week that crypto miners are parting with their GPU’s on secondary markets, as Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies have become too expensive to mine and less profitable with declining prices stifling markets since January.

$776 million worth of Add In-Board, or AIB, units were sold to crypto-miners in 2017, with the best units selling out at the height of the crypto boom last winter, much to the annoyance of gamers, who found themselves outbid and out of pocket. But although it’s hardly game over for cryptos just yet, AIB’s and GPU’s are once again readily available in-store and online, and at knocked-down prices, bringing joy to the hearts of the joystick brigade.

Trump Takes Cryptos To Task In Cyber-Fraud Crackdown

Donald Trump was in no mood for games this week, signing an Executive Order to create a task force to investigate digital currencies, market manipulation and money laundering. It will be led by the Deputy Attorney General, has a wide remit, and is a further sign that US authorities are stepping up their campaign against organized crime and money laundering using digital currencies.

Earlier this month, the Department of Justice revealed that it had made numerous arrests following an undercover sting operation within the gloomy corridors of the darkweb. While this new task force appears to have a predominantly advisory role, it is clearly aimed at “cyber-fraud” and “securities and commodities fraud”, and is likely to report back to Trump in the near future on the best ways to tackle these types of illegal activities.

World’s First Crypto Bank Mooted in Malta

Not content with being the world’s largest crypto exchange by market volume, Binance looks set to play a leading role in the development of the world’s first decentralized, community-owned bank, reported Bloomberg this week.

The project, called the Founder’s Bank, is based in Malta, the island nation that is proving to be very friendly to blockchain ventures. Binance has staked 5% of the funding of the bank, the remaining money coming from other cryptocurrency investors and projects. Once established, it is hoped that the Founder’s Bank will issue its own “legally binding equity tokens”, using blockchain equity fund startup Neufund to conduct the sale. However, banks have to be regulated, and Founder’s has a long road ahead to obtain regulatory acceptance, particularly from the European Central Bank.

LiteCoin Weighs In To German Bank Market

Staying with banks, Litecoin founder Charlie Lee announced this week that it had acquired a stake in a German bank. Using a “strategic partnership with TokenPay”, the Litecoin Foundation acquired 9.9% of WEG Bank. The deal between TokenPay and Litecoin sees the crypto, \- currently the sixth largest in terms of market capitalization\- lay its “high-level blockchain mechanism capabilities” at the feet of the payment platform. Under German law, no more than 9.9% of a bank can be purchased without regulatory approval.

The news was greeted by an upswing in the value of Litecoin on Wednesday, making it one of the few top 100 coins to remain stable this week.

Weekend Recovery Short-Lived

Litecoin (LTC) was the exception to the rule this week, after a decent weekend’s trading gave way to a sharp decline. Ether (ETH) opened Monday at $488, but had plummeted to $429 by Wednesday, its lowest point for two weeks. Similarly, XRP lost momentum midweek, seeing its $0.48 Monday high retreat to $0.44 by Wednesday. Bitcoin Cash (BCH) showed some recovery last week, but this week came crashing back down to earth, losing $70 in 24 hours between Monday and Tuesday. It’s early week high of $751 gave way to a low of $688. The Tuesday blues affected EOS too; a Monday high of $8.71 a far cry from its Wednesday low of $6.85. Litecoin’s bank announcement mitigated the general market decline, and its dip from an opening $82.54 to a Wednesday low of $76.07 was softer than most.

Confusion over the regulatory future of cryptocurrencies is preventing the market from gaining any momentum, not helped by more news of hacks, not to mention Donald Trump’s determination to crack down on digital asset fraud. To see current prices click here.

Stay up to date on crypto news!

Sign up for our newsletter for all the hottest crypto stories, ICO reviews, and insights from leading experts of the crypto world - four times a week.